Purpose and Methodology

WHO? We are students, faculty and doctoral students at UCLA. We represent Honors 82, a class that seeks to better understand safety, insecurity, and violence in the context of university campuses and local communities. We are 10 students, one teaching assistant, one professor, and one guest teaching assistant.

WHAT? The point of this website is to spread awareness concerning issues of violence, safety, and security on the UCLA campus and those like it. Our intent is not to dismiss the UCLA administration’s attempts at maintaining safety, but to critically analyze its effectiveness and offer policy recommendations to improve campus security. For our group project, we utilized an interdisciplinary methodology to observe various aspects of our designated areas. Specifically, we applied the knowledge that we have absorbed from numerous class meetings, readings, and guest presentations that emphasize the issue of insecurity in particular places. For most if not all of us, these safety audits were conducted using collective experiences on campus over 3+ years. Our safety audits are loosely based on various safety audits conducted by women’s safety groups, local governments, and community organizations to address security issues in their respective areas

WHEN?We first conducted our safety audits on May 8, 2014. Since then we have been working collectively as a class to create this website. We met weekly on Thursdays for 3-hour periods to discuss the safety and security issues we faced on campus and neighboring communities. During these meetings, we delegated responsibilities and conducted collective analysis and editing.

WHERE?In doing our safety audits we visited two main areas of concentrated hotspots that we located on a campus map. The first area is located primarily in “South Campus” between the Mathematical Sciences Building and La Kretz. The second area is spread over “The Hill,” or dormitory area, which comprises a majority of student housing. We address 8 specific hotspots and the dangers that accompany these areas.

HOW? First, we carried out our safety audit by assigning different roles in our groups. This safety audit was adapted from multiple existing audits and similar types of evaluations. Two students took notes, one was a photographer, and the rest contributed by making analytical observations. Through our collective efforts, we attempted to distinguish what made a place unsafe by examining the infrastructure and detecting what seemed to be odd. The dorm area group noticed the narrow, dark alleys in Hitch that could pose potential hazards. On the other hand, the South Campus group observed the lack of surveillance in stairwells in Boelter Hall. As we considered these areas unsafe, we contemplated how they could be fixed in order to promote a safer climate. The dorm area group agreed that the UCLA administration must revisit their priorities by adding more lighting and catering to the broad student body. The South Campus group realized the need for clear instructions posted on engineering buildings, such as “Exit” signs. Lastly, we ended our safety audit by going back to the classroom and discussing our findings with our classmates and instructors. We found many similarities and acknowledged the importance of gathering valuable data that will encourage student government officials and the UCLA administration to request assistance beyond the campus setting. Our campus is a microcosm of the outer world, and therefore it is imperative to fix problems locally in order to help initiate global impact.

WHY? Violence, safety, and insecurity are issues that need to be addressed around the world. These issues are not restricted to a certain region, culture, or group, as violence and insecurity can be found in every corner of the globe. From New York to South Africa, instances of violence occur, increasing fear. The poor in every country continue to face insecurity in housing, food, and health. Currently, interpersonal violence accounts for half a million deaths each year, and insecurity reduces happiness and productivity (Whitzman, 2008). Continual exposure to such circumstances fosters a sense of powerlessness and vulnerability, which can have drastic consequences such as increasing criminal activity as individuals normalize violence. These issues continue to plague the UCLA community as well, evidenced by sexual assaults and other violent events. The diversity of the UCLA community unfortunately lends itself well to isolation, which poses a hidden danger that risks eruption into violent events. On-campus life, isolation, and diversity are mutually reinforcing. In other words, increasing isolation reflects a community’s diversity, as booming diversity creates more intangible barriers. Students who are in the “barrier position” in one community will feel isolated from other communities. The numbers of these kinds of people are increasing. Without a proper support system in such hugely diverse communities, individuals instinctively turn to their self-protection mechanism and build various communities in order to manufacture their own sense of belonging; students with similar backgrounds preferring to hang out or gather together. By securing themselves to these group identities, individuals reinforce the cycle of isolation as they create more intangible barriers. As a result, college students are particularly vulnerable to extreme psychological issues. When confronted with insecurity, young adults’ cognitive and emotional development can be disrupted, and if left untreated, these individuals are more likely to engage in aggressive/disruptive behaviors, fail school, develop post-traumatic stress disorder, become depressed, suffer from drug or alcohol abuse, and engage in unsafe sexual behavior. This poses a threat to campus safety and can spark violent events. The Isla Vista tragedy that took place late-May 2014 is an example of the dangers of isolation on campus safety. Major gun violence occurs on campuses because the offenders have already been hurt for a long time or, in many cases, have been isolated. Isolation can lead to students’ feelings of loneliness and self-doubt. In the most severe cases, the students suffer depression or manic anxiety. Therefore, it is important to reduce isolation and any other hazardous elements which can arouse violence and insecurity, and it is even more pertinent to create viable solutions that prevent violence and insecurity and promote safety. The safety audit of the campus has allowed us to critically think about why these issues continue on campus and to discuss solutions to create a safer campus environment.